History
The current form of the Darwin Football Association (DFA) was created in 1951. A previous version existed from 1938 to 1944 but appears unrelated despite two of the DFA's foundation clubs being in the competition. The first season featured just four clubs: Yeoman, Tewkesbury, APPM and Montello. [1] Yeoman and APPM were previously members of the North West Football Union [2] and Tewkesbury a member of the Ridgley Football Association. [3] But in 1952 the numbers increased by three with the inclusion of Somerset, Mooreville and Ridgley. [4] The arrival of Myalla and Yolla in 1953 increased the number again to eight clubs combined with the departure of Tewkesbury. [5]
In 1955 the number of clubs dropped back to six with Montello and Somerset departing, [6] and then following season APPM changed their name to South Burnie. [7] In 1959 Mooreville had merged with Somerset to form the Cam FC [8] as the competition remained more or less stable.
In 1965 the folding of the Riana Football Association brought Natone and Cuprona to the competition. [9] This brought the competition up to eight clubs, and has never dropped below that number since. Another period of stability followed with only Cam reverting to Somerset FC in 1973 [10] to create any ripples.
In 1982 the competition expanded to ten clubs with the inclusion of Sprent and West Ulverstone from the Leven Football Association. [11] The DFA introduced a final five in 1986. [12] In 1994, Queenstown "Crows"—a merger of the Queenstown-based clubs from the Western Tasmanian Football Association—joined the competition. [13]
Numbers started to fall in 1996 when Sprent departed for the North Western Football Association, [14] and then the following season South Burnie decided to try their luck in the Northern Tasmanian Football League, [15] but they returned in 1999. [16] In 2002 West Ulverstone followed Sprent to the North West Football Association, and in 2006 after many years in existence Myalla folded [17] bringing the number of clubs back to eight for the first time since 1981.
Due to a shortage of players Natone went into recess for the 2019 season. [18] Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic during 2020, the complete 2020 DFA Season was cancelled. Natone have re-joined the league for the 2021 season.
Natone re-entered recess prior to the 2024 season. [19]
Councils of Tasmania are the 29 administrative districts of the Australian state of Tasmania. Local government areas (LGAs), more generally known as councils, are the tier of government responsible for the management of local duties such as road maintenance, town planning and waste management.
Football Tasmania (FT) is the governing body for soccer in the Australian state of Tasmania. The federation oversees competitions across Tasmania, Tasmanian representative teams, and development of the sport in the state. The federation was known as the Tasmanian Soccer Association until 1996, when it was renamed to Soccer Tasmania. In line with national changes in March 2006, it became Football Federation Tasmania. In February 2019, the organisation became simply Football Tasmania.
The electoral division of Braddon is one of the five electorates in the Tasmanian House of Assembly, it includes north-west and western Tasmania as well as King Island. Braddon takes its name from the former Premier of Tasmania, Sir Edward Braddon. The division shares its name and boundaries with the federal division of Braddon.
The electoral division of Montgomery is one of the fifteen electorates in the Tasmanian Legislative Council.
The North West Football League is an Australian rules football competition in North West Tasmania. The league was previously known as the "Northern Tasmanian Football League" from its inception in 1987 until the end of the 2014 season.
Australian rules football in Tasmania, has been played since the late 1860s and draws the largest audience for a football code in the state.
Burnie City Council is a local government body in Tasmania, located in the city and surrounds of Burnie in the north-west of the state. The Burnie local government area is classified as urban and has a population of 19,348, which also encompasses Cooee, Hampshire, Natone and Ridgley.
Geoffrey Bernard "Paddy" Martin was an Australian rules footballer who played in Tasmania with Launceston, Sandy Bay, Ulverstone and Burnie. He was a half back flanker in Launceston's official 'Team of the Century' and in 2005 was inducted into Tasmanian Football Hall of Fame as a coaching legend. Martin also represented Tasmania once in first-class cricket.
Ivor Thomas Clay was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy in the Victorian Football League (VFL) during the 1940s and also a first-class cricketer for Tasmania.
Harold Kennedy "Joe" Littler was an Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL). He also had a long career in Tasmania playing in the Northern Tasmanian Football Association, North West Football Union (NWFU), and the North West Football Association (NWFA).
The North West Football Union (NWFU) was an Australian rules football competition which ran from 1910 to 1986. In its time it was one of the three main leagues in Tasmania, with the Tasmanian Football League and Northern Tasmanian Football Association representing the rest of the state. Burnie, Latrobe and Ulverstone were the most successful clubs with 12 premierships each.
The North Western Football Association is an Australian rules football competition based on the North West Coast of Tasmania, Australia.
The Circular Head Football Association (CHFA) is an Australian rules football competition based in the Circular Head area of north-western Tasmania, Australia. The CHFA currently features four clubs from small communities in the region and is the second oldest regional competition in Tasmania.
The Leven Football Association (LFA) was an Australian rules football competition in Tasmania, Australia. Four clubs from small communities in northern Tasmania competed for the premiership every year. The games were played on Saturday and both matches were at the same ground in the form of a double-header. Having gone into recess for the 2016 season, the LFA folded in October 2016 after 92 years as a football league.
The Yeoman Football Club is an Australian rules football club based in Burnie, Tasmania, which plays its home games at Wivenhoe Showgrounds, Burnie. It competes in the Darwin Football Association, running Senior and Reserve Grade sides.
Montello is a suburb of the city of Burnie in North West Tasmania. It is about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) south-west of the centre of Burnie, and recorded a population of 1217 in the 2016 census.
Mooreville is a rural residential locality in the local government area (LGA) of Burnie in the North-west and west LGA region of Tasmania. The locality is about 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) south-west of the town of Burnie. The 2016 census has a population of 303 for the state suburb of Mooreville. While there are some residential allotments, the area is mainly agricultural farming land.
The South Burnie Football Club is an Australian rules football club, based in the town of Burnie, Tasmania. It currently competes in the Darwin Football Association (DFA), and is the most successful club in DFA history. The club was initially known as APPM, and was formed in 1941, five years after the Burnie pulp factory itself. After competing in the DFA in 1941, the disbanding of the league in 1944 resulted in the club being admitted to the North West Football Union (NWFU) in 1945. The club rejoined the reformed DFA as a founding member in 1951, deciding to change its name from APPM to South Burnie in 1956. After a two-year stint in the Northern Tasmanian Football League (NTFL) in 1997–1998, the hawks returned to the DFA and enjoyed a sustained period of success. From 2000 to 2019, the senior team reached the finals every season, playing 11 Grand Finals and winning 7 premierships. The club's reserves team in the same period played in 17 Grand Finals, winning 14 premierships including an incredible unbeaten streak of 11 flags from 2006 to 2016. The club holds the most senior premierships in the DFA with 15.
